Yep. the second screenshot. Do you have a name for that control? i call it a selector :).

thanks for the pointer to the ability to inherit from some base classes.
i'm quite familiar with such things.

however, the link you provided doesn't really seem to tie it all together for me. i'm sure it is because i'm still learning the ADX framework.

I'm working in Outlook (2010 and later).

I have an ADXOlFormsManager element in my addin.
I add an ADXOlFormsCollectionItem to this and set the class name to my ADXOlForm.
I set the Item to:
ExplorerAllowedDropRegions:= ReadingPane
ExplorerLayout:= ReadingPane

I fail to see which object i would change/override here in order to suppress the "selector" control.

You can use the MyControlPane class to hide (=not let them draw itself) or customize them in the way described in that blog.

If however you need to use controls of your own, you'll need to use two different panes:

1) it uses the ReadingPaneTop (or any ReadingPane*, not just ReadingPane) region; it doesn't show the header; instead, you use this pane as a replacement of the Add-in Express header: just draw your controls on it;
2) it uses the ReadingPane region; it doesn't show the header as well.

I want to be able to show/hide my custom form using either buttons from the ribbon, or from my own "toolbar".

When a user would click on my button, i want my form to show instead of the default reading pane.

When my custom form shows, i don't want the 'selector' control to show - just my form only.

The user would be able to switch back to the default reading pane by clicking my button a second time.

This is similar behavior as the attachment preview feature of outlook.

Specific to the actual use, i'm creating an add-in to show SMTP message headers. I wan't to show that as an alternate pane in the reading pane. Sort of like a toggle between the actual message, and the message headers. But...i don't want to use the 'pane selector' control that add-in-express is automatically creating.
So, when you first click on a message in outlook, every thing is as if no addin existed. you simply see the message as normal. No pane selector or anything.
Then, you click a button somewhere else (ribbon maybe) and POOF, the message headers pane appears and 'replaces' the message view. Click the button again, and POOF! you're back to reading the message again.

If such is not possible, i'm okay with that...but i hope such is not the case.

Eriq VanBibber writes:
When a user would click on my button, i want my form to show instead of the default reading pane.
When my custom form shows, i don't want the 'selector' control to show - just my form only.
The user would be able to switch back to the default reading pane by clicking my button a second time.

Doesn't the project we created work in this fashion? It does the very same thing. the difference is: it provides two buttons instead of one.

This technology is now available for our custom development services only. Based on the Add-in Express for Office core, it is designed for building custom-tailored Office add-ins with far less coding than you usually have to do. Plus, it includes all Add-in Express features such as True RAD, visual designers, Outlook view and form regions, etc.

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